Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh): As per a high-ranking official of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the first test flight of India’s highly anticipated human-rated rocket for its (human) space mission ‘Gaganyaan’ is scheduled for December 2024, marking a significant milestone in India’s space exploration journey.
Speaking to the media after the successful orbiting of India’s earth observation satellite-08 (EOS-08), Dr.S. Somanath, Chairman, ISRO, said: “The Gaganyaan rocket’s three stages have come to Satish Dhawan Space Centre (located here). The integration of the crew module is happening at VSSC (Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram).”
Somanath says that in November of this year, all the equipment for the Gaganyaan rocket, code-named G1, will arrive at Satish Dhawan Space Centre here. The rocket is scheduled to launch in December.
Two satellites, EOS-08 and SR-0, belonging to the space start-up Space Rickshaw, were safely launched into orbit by ISRO’s new Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) on Friday morning in a manner reminiscent of a copybook.
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It was SSLV’s third and last development flight.
Dr. Somanath, Chairman of ISRO, confirmed the successful completion of the third and final development flight of the SSLV, a testament to India’s growing space technology capabilities.
“We can declare the process of SSLV development has been completed. We are in the process of transferring the SSLV technology to the industries,” he said.
Somanath said the SSLV design has been kept simple for the industry to make it.
The SSLV designed and developed by ISRO has a payload capacity of 500 kg and is powered by solid fuel.
ISRO’s plans for the SSLV technology go beyond commercial production. The space agency will not only transfer the SSLV technology to the industry but also provide comprehensive training on the rocket-building process, fostering a promising future for India’s space industry.
“We will transfer the knowledge and not just the drawings. The industry people will come to ISRO to learn how to build rockets,” he added.
Last year, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), the regulator for private players in the Indian space sector, announced ISRO’s decision to transfer the SSLV technology to private companies.
The process of selecting the industry or the consortium of industries is underway.
Somanath said the selected party will need about two years to learn and roll out two SSLVs. In the interim, public-sector NewSpace India Ltd will fund the SSLV’s creation.
As regards the status of the second launch pad at Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu, Somanath said construction work has begun, and the facility will be commissioned in two years.
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Venkatachari Jagannathan – –IANS
